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The Detroit Lions may turn some of Ford Field's 132 suites into club or other gathering space under a plan to refresh the $500 million stadium that opened in 2002.

New President Rod Wood said the team has asked the Detroit office of M. Arthur Gensler Jr. & Associates Inc. to re-examine, prioritize and update costs for a Ford Field improvements master plan created last year. (See related story.)

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Detroit Lions President Rod Wood

Wood, 55, was elevated out of a job as the Ford family's investment adviser to become team president in November after Lions owner Martha Firestone Ford fired Tom Lewand as part of a radical overhaul of the long-struggling National Football League team's front office.

In a wide-ranging telephone conversation last week with Crain's, Wood addressed potential improvements at the stadium. He said the "Ford Field 2.0" plan Lewand hinted at in recent years is something he'll take a serious look at later this year.

"Now that it's been open for more than a dozen years, we need to be refreshing the stadium," he said.

Any changes likely would begin in 2017, Wood said.

While details remain fluid, Wood did say the Lions will take a hard look at reducing the number of suites in favor of larger, open club spaces, access to which would range in price.

That would follow a sports industry trend of building fewer suites or converting traditional suites into other types of premium spaces.

"The suite market has changed over time as companies want to entertain in different ways," Wood said.

The Lions already have converted some Ford Field spaces into clubs, such as the MGM Grand Detroit Tunnel Club that is a bar through which players enter and exit their locker room.

Other NFL teams have created similar spaces, such as the Dallas Cowboys and Cleveland Browns, and baseball's Detroit Tigers and Cleveland Indians in recent years converted stadium suites into club or gathering spaces.

The Lions will seek to create the right mix of suites, club seats and premium gathering spaces, Wood said.

"That's being done at a lot of other stadiums," he said.

Sports industry insiders agree.

"The appetite for premium is evolving. What used to be 14-16 person suites are changing," said Amanda Verhoff, executive director of the Cincinnati-based Association of Luxury Suite Directors. "Clients want to entertain in smaller doses, so new products are hitting the market."

Examples include 4-6 seat loge boxes (something the new Detroit Red Wings arena will include), and "living room" spaces that have cushioned club or premium seats facing TVs.

Another trend are bunker suites that don't have views of the court/game, she said. The Palace of Auburn Hills has such suites, which are for high-end entertaining that come with courtside seats.

Gensler has a prior relationship with the Lions: It co-designed the Lions' $35.5 million, 115,000-square-foot headquarters and training facility in Allen Park that opened in 2002.

A September 2014 analysis by Bloomberg showed that the Lions' top single-game suite rental price of $10,300 was the least-expensive premium cost in the NFL.

Detroit's entry price of $9,300 for a 20-person single-game suite was among the lowest, but well ahead of the Oakland Raiders' $4,610.

The Lions are still determining some pricing for 2016.

"We're evaluating our ticket strategy right now," Wood said. While specifics aren't yet in place, he said the prices will remain in the NFL's lower quartile for ticket costs.

Season ticket holders were informed last week via email that prices would increase slightly for the third consecutive year. They will range from $399 to $2,238.